Anxiety Symptoms and Disorders in the First Year After Sustaining Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Purpose/Objective: The goals of the present study were (a) to document the prevalence of anxiety-related disorders and anxiety symptoms at 4, 8, and 12 months postinjury in individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) while considering preinjury history of anxiety disorders and (b) to verify whether the presence of anxiety in the first months after mTBI was associated with more symptoms present 1 year after the injury. Research Method/Design: One hundred and twenty participants hospitalized after an accident and having sustained mTBI were assessed at 4, 8, and 12 months postaccident with the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and questionnaires assessing fatigue, irritability, perceived stress, cognitive difficulties, depression, insomnia, and pain. Results: At 4 months, 23.8% of participants presented with at least one anxiety-related disorder compared with 15.2% at 8 months and 11.2% at 12 months. Overall, 32.5% presented with at least one anxiety disorder over the first 12 months post-mTBI. Participants with a history of anxiety (20.5%) were significantly more anxious after their accident. Individuals who were anxious 4 months after the accident presented with more symptoms in different areas 12 months postinjury compared with nonanxious individuals. Conclusions/Implications: The present results highlight that anxiety should be evaluated and managed carefully as it appears to be a key factor in the persistence of other mTBI-related symptoms. Impact and Implications Anxiety symptoms and disorders are frequent in the first year after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) compared with 1-year prevalence rates in the general population. Anxiety seems to exacerbate or prolong mTBI-related symptoms including fatigue, irritability, perceived stress, depressive symptoms, pain, sleep difficulties, and cognitive difficulties. Clinicians should consider monitoring anxiety symptoms more systematically early on after a mTBI to provide preventive or therapeutic interventions.